Which eccentric cowboy in Stockton County branded Evan Sting on Shotner Hill, murdering the young man? This is what private eye Joe Boxford asks himself when he's hired by Evan's father Benny to find the murderer. Joe needs some help, and enlists the services of Tal Linear, owner of The Linear Bar. But sparks begin to fly between the two. As romance heats up between them, they attempt to solve the branding crime. As the suspects start to pile up and weird relationships unfold in West Stockton, Joe and Tal begin to unravel a heinous crime. That is, until Tal vanishes and Joe thinks his sleuth buddy is going to be the killer's next victim. Does Joe have the skills needed to be a hero and save Tal from the killer's secret agenda and solve the crime? Or will Joe fall flat on his face and lose his reputation as a private investigator as well as his new lover, Tal Linear?

Stockton County Cowboys Book

Ten iron sculptures were shared and I sided with Tal’s opinion of Dash’s work: they weren’t for me. The pieces of art seemed boring and lifeless, without any passion or exuberance whatsoever. One iron horizon resembled the others. Truth was I wouldn’t have paid a dime for the sculptures, but didn’t admit that to Dash, whom seemed quite pleasant, charming, and rather interested in me


During a long and tedious story of how and why he constructed Under the Sun #4, a cactus with giant thorns, he sidled up to me, brushed fingers along my left hip, circled me, and said, “I know why you’re here.”


“Explain,” I said with arrogance, surprised by his announcement.


He stood in front of me, brushed his chin against my chin, stepped away, and said, “It’s about that Evan Sting boy, isn’t it? You know that he liked to sculpt and spent some hours here and at Blue Ranch with me. You’re very much aware that I had a connection to him, and you think I’m the one who branded and killed him.”


Chapter 17